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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27576187">the pretty lies (the ugly truth)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/castelia/pseuds/castelia'>castelia</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Cassandra Redemption (Disney: Tangled), Episode: s03e13 Cassandra's Revenge, Gen, cass tells zhan tiri where to shove it, cassandra learns how gothel really died via mirror shard, rapunzel is not here for all this victim blaming and stands up for herself</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 03:54:46</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,205</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27576187</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/castelia/pseuds/castelia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“It wasn’t my decision, Cass, you know that!”</p>
<p>“Well, was it your decision to push her out a window?” Cassandra snarls at her, hateful and angry and <em>wrong</em>.</p>
<p>Rapunzel gasps, and even as she stammers how Cass wasn’t there, how she couldn’t possibly know what it was like, she hears the voice of the woman who is the cause of all of this misery in her head:</p>
<p>
  <em>Stop taking everything so seriously!</em>
</p>
<p>In another life, she might have listened to it, might have given in to the dent ‘Mother’ left in her self-esteem after eighteen years of derogatory remarks.</p>
<p>In this life, Rapunzel refuses to succumb so easily.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Captain of Corona's Guard &amp; Cassandra (Disney), Cassandra &amp; Rapunzel (Disney: Tangled), Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>85</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">“It wasn’t my decision, Cass, you know that!”</p>
<p class="p1">“Well, was it your decision to push her out a window?” Cassandra snarls at her, hateful and angry and <em>wrong</em>.</p>
<p class="p1">Rapunzel gasps, and even as she stammers how Cass wasn’t there, how she couldn’t possibly know what it was like, she hears the voice of the woman who is the cause of all of this misery in her head:</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>Stop taking everything so seriously!</em>
</p>
<p class="p1">In another life, she might have listened to it, might have given in to the dent ‘Mother’ left in her self-esteem after eighteen years of derogatory remarks.</p>
<p class="p1">In this life, Rapunzel refuses to succumb so easily.</p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<hr/>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<p class="p1">There is a new tower.</p>
<p class="p1">Cass knows how to hurt her as only a best friend does—building her stronghold on the ashes of Rapunzel’s former prison (her former home). She had seen the way Rapunzel had cried after the black rocks tore it apart and used it to her advantage.</p>
<p class="p1">Not for the first time, Rapunzel wonders if she will even be able to save her. Not for the first time, Rapunzel pushes that thought far away into a corner of her mind, where she stashes away other unpleasant facts (she still flinches like she’ll get berated whenever she mumbles in front of her parents; it was a miracle that she saved Eugene when her hair was brown and she has probably used up all her miracles if such a situation comes by again; her friendship with Cassandra was flawed on both sides before Cass ever took the moonstone).</p>
<p class="p1">As they try to figure out a way in, Rapunzel explores the ruins of where she grew up, hoping for a trace of one of her old paintings. She finds traces, yes, but they’re just fragments. Not one of her painting has been left whole. She sees a fragment of her floating lights mural and is filled with this deep, inexplicable sadness. She is almost glad for the distraction when something something glitters in the corner of her eye.</p>
<p class="p1">It’s a mirror shard, the sun’s reflection making it noticable. She wonders if it is <em>the</em> shard; if this is what cut her hair and her strings tying her to that selfish, selfish woman. Without thinking about it, she tucks it in her bag.</p>
<p class="p1">Rapunzel pleads for Cass to let her in, and an entrance opens.</p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<hr/>
<p class="p1"> </p>
<p class="p1">"I will never stop trying to get<em> through to</em> you! I won't fight you, I won't justify your hatred, and there is nothing you can do to change that! Nothing!"</p>
<p class="p1">Cassandra proceeds to threaten and hurt Eugene. All bets are off.</p>
<p class="p1">Varian gives her the new incantation, and with a heavy heart she decides she has to use it. A battle between sun and moon, with the most powerful incantations yet.</p>
<p class="p1">The shard falls out of her bag.</p>
<p class="p1">Everyone is ready to ignore it in favor of a battle, she is about to demand Cassandra lets Eugene go, when it comes alive.</p>
<p class="p1">(Later, she’ll learn that all of Gothel’s mirrors were embued with magic that captured the past, including the mirror that shattered and fell when Rapunzel finally stood up to the woman calling herself her mother—but that is later, and for now, Rapunzel’s heart stutters as she lets herself hope she might finally be able to show the truth)</p>
<p class="p1">“What is this?” Cassandra asks, thrown off guard as she stares at the mirror shard playing out a scene. The black rocks holding Eugene don’t disappear, but the grip does relax. It is because of that that Rapunzel speaks up as soon as she recognizes the words she hears:</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>I will never stop trying to get away from you!</em>
</p>
<p class="p1">How fitting, that it is these words the mirror gives them, when Rapunzel has echoed them just a few minutes ago with just a slight alteration.</p>
<p class="p1">“Your mother’s death,” Rapunzel says acidly. Cassandra flinches, wether at the vitriol or something else, she doesn’t know.</p>
<p class="p1">She is just so fed up with this. Cassandra wasn’t raised by Gothel, she was raised by a man who is good and kind and doesn’t that <em>mean</em> anything to her? Why would Cassandra want to be constantly mocked and belittled and <em>used</em>?</p>
<p class="p1">“She…chained you up?” Cassandra says, hesitantly. The rocks holding Rapunzel disappear. She walks over to the shard where she can see the scene more clearly. Gothel is putting the chains on Eugene now, making sure he can’t follow them.</p>
<p class="p1">“She chained me up,” she confirms. “She stabbed Eugene. She did a lot of bad things, Cass.”</p>
<p class="p1">She says this all calmly. A small part of Rapunzel wants to just be mean, to throw it all in Cassanda’s face because <em>yes</em>! Gothel chained her up! Gothel gagged her! Gothel kidapped her from her parents! Gothel didn’t let her leave that tower for years! And Cassandra held it all against her. Like it was all Rapunzel’s fault somehow. But it <em>wasn’t</em>.</p>
<p class="p1">In the shard, Eugene cuts off her hair. And it’s not his fault, either, Rapunzel fumes in her head. He was just setting her free. He had no idea that Gothel had been using her hair to remain young and cutting it off would reverse that effect. And Pascal? Pascal, who made sure Gothel’s drop would be a lethal one? Pascal was just trying to protect her.</p>
<p class="p1">Brown-haired Rapunzel reaches out desperately to a woman who is doomed.</p>
<p class="p1">“As you can see,” she says, voice still calm. “Pascal is the only one who you might blame for pushing her out a window. Are you going to shout at my chameleon, Cassandra?”</p>
<p class="p1">“I… But…” She seems completely at a loss. Sudddenly, she perks up and glances at her right. “I know that, but look.” She points at the shard. “That wasn’t Rapunzel’s fault.”</p>
<p class="p1">The small, mean part of Rapunzel that was still considering getting at least some vindictation dissipates at hearing those words. She does not, however, know at who they are spoken. Cassandra says it all to empty air, nodding along like it replies.</p>
<p class="p1">“Let him go, Cass,” Rapunzel asks softly. On the shard, she cries and says <em>you were mine</em>.</p>
<p class="p1">Wordlessly, Cassandra does, setting Varian free, too. Eugene and Varian walk over to them, equally silent.</p>
<p class="p1">Together, they watch Rapunzel cry over Eugene’s dead body. They watch her sing an impossible song out of desperation, and they watch it <em>work</em>. There’s a hug and a first kiss, and that’s when the shard stops playing one of the biggests events of Rapunzel’s life. She knows, seeing it all again so vivid, she will get nightmares about this again tonight.</p>
<p class="p1">No one says anything, until—</p>
<p class="p1">“Wow!” Varian is wide-eyed and clearly unable to hold this back, despite looking a little pale at seeing his idol die. “You actually used the sundrop’s power, without <em>being</em> the sundrop! What does that even mean? The possibilites—“</p>
<p class="p1">“We get it, alchemist,” Cassandra says flatly. Varian stops talking and takes a few steps backwards. “Would you shut up for a second?!”</p>
<p class="p1">Everyone startles at the outburst. Varian looks like he’s considering making a run for it.</p>
<p class="p1">“Not you,” she snaps at him. “Her.”</p>
<p class="p1">She gestures wildly at the empty air.</p>
<p class="p1">“Cass,” Rapunzel says as gently as she can. “There’s no one there.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Of course there is!” Cassandra snarls. “The little goth girl. She’s a friend—“</p>
<p class="p1">“Or at least she’d like to be,” Varian fills in, shocked. Cassandra’s jaw drops.</p>
<p class="p1">“Okay, is anyone going to start making sense?” Eugene speaks up for the first time, trying and failing to sound lighthearted. Rapunzel feels a pang. He just had to see that again, through the shard. She thinks she might not be the only one with nightmares tonight. It is a good thing they have each other. “Because I’m starting to feel real left out. Have you guys started a Little Goth Girl club or something?”</p>
<p class="p1">“Shut up, Fitzherbrat,” Cass says without any malice. It sounds so much like old times that Rapunzel feels hope again, hope she will not push away into a corner of her mind. She clings to it, and she <em>hopes</em> that today is the day they bring her back.</p>
<p class="p1">Cass stares intensely at Varian, who is starting to look uncomfortable. “How do you know about her?”</p>
<p class="p1">“She told me how to find the sun incantation,” Varian says, before hesitantly adding, “But you know, it was in a dream, and it was a weird one, like, her head was huge and it could bend around like an owl’s, and—“</p>
<p class="p1">“No.” Her features have contorted as if she’s taken a bite out of a very sour lemon. “That’s not—she wouldn’t do that. She’s been helping me.” The look disappears, is replaced with triumph. “She says you’re lying.”</p>
<p class="p1">“You’re going to trust blindly that this girl is telling the truth, when you’ve been giving a reason to doubt that?” Eugene says sceptically. “Now that doesn’t sound like the Cass I know.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Is she the one who has been making you do this?” Rapunzel pleads, hoping that the answer is yes, hoping that this was all a misunderstanding and Cass will just reject that girl and come back home—</p>
<p class="p1">“Of course not.” Cassandra seems less angry now. “Gothel—fine, you might have a point about…that. But she still—she still chose <em>you</em> over me. My own mother!”</p>
<p class="p1">“It is not my fault that she was so twisted! Don’t ruin everything for her!” she cries, trying to make her (former?) best friend understand how much this blame is hurting her. “I can’t believe you attacked your father.”</p>
<p class="p1">Guilt attacks Cassandra’s face before she schools it into something indifferent.</p>
<p class="p1">“He raised you, Cass,” she says softly. “He gave you a better childhood than Gothel ever could have. I’m sorry that she decided staying young was better than raising an amazing daughter like you, I’m sorry that happened to you, but it’s not my fault.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I…” She glances to her right, and Rapunzel has to assume that the invisble girl is whispering more lies into Cassandra’s ear. “Fine!” she spits out. “And burning my hand, that just happens to not be your fault, either, right?”</p>
<p class="p1">Rapunzel’s eyes widen, familiar guilt flooding her. Not a lie, but the truth.</p>
<p class="p1">“That… Neither of us knew the incantation would burn like that.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I had a plan. You should have let me follow through!”</p>
<p class="p1">“I…made a decision,” she says. “I did what I thought was best. I know our friendship wasn’t perfect. But this isn’t just me you’re hurting, it’s Corona! The kingdom you once swore to protect. Innocent people, Cass.”</p>
<p class="p1">Cassandra opens her mouth, then shuts it again. Several expressions—uncertainty, anger, shame—cross her face at once.</p>
<p class="p1">“You said we’re not the same,” says Varian. “I know our motivations aren’t. But after I turned against the kingdom, after it was over, the guilt I felt was crushing. I’m trying to do better. If you think that you’ve gone too far, that you won’t be accepted back, just look at <em>me</em>. It’s a long process, but it’s not impossible.”</p>
<p class="p1">“My Dad—“ Cass chokes out.</p>
<p class="p1">“He’ll forgive you,” Rapunzel hurries to say. “Of course he’ll forgive you. He’ll be too happy to have you back to even think about anger. He misses you <em>so much</em>, Cass. So much.”</p>
<p class="p1">“We all do,” Eugene says seriously, before waving a dismissive hand. “But, you know, don’t quote me on that.”</p>
<p class="p1">“She won’t leave me alone, Raps,” she whispers, and oh, the feeling that floods through Rapunzel at hearing that nickname from her lips again makes it all, even the shard, worth it.</p>
<p class="p1">“The little girl?” Rapunzel would hit the best friend hurting ghost with a frying pan if she wasn’t invisible. “Is she speaking to you now?”</p>
<p class="p1">“She wants us to fight. She wants me to make you fight.”</p>
<p class="p1">“She does want a fight, doesn’t she,” Varian muses, always figuring things out. “She practically gave us the sun incantation…”</p>
<p class="p1">“She’s the one who gave me the idea to grab the moonstone. I met her in the House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow.”</p>
<p class="p1">Puzzle pieces Rapunzel hadn’t even known existed slide into place.</p>
<p class="p1">“Well, maybe you should ask your <em>friend</em> why she wants the sun and the moon to clash so badly,” says Varian.</p>
<p class="p1">Cassandra’s face shutters. She looks between their group and the empty space, breathing heavily. Rapunzel knows even before she starts chanting the incantation that she’s too overwhelmed.</p>
<p class="p1">“Crescent high above, evolving as you go…”</p>
<p class="p1">Next to her, Eugene tenses, expecting a fight. Rapunzel gets into a protective stance, too. But Cassandra and her rocks are not heading towards them; they are heading away from them. She uses the rocks to run away from the tower.</p>
<p class="p1">“Cassandra—“ <em>Wait</em>, she wants to say.</p>
<p class="p1">But, as Rapunzel has learned by now, Cassandra does not wait. Not anymore.</p>
<p class="p2"> </p>
<p class="p1"> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">When Cassandra stops running, her chest is heaving with exhaustion. She looks back and sees nothing but trees and leaves. Good. That means no one will be coming after her. No one except…</p><p class="p1">“What have you <em>done</em>?” the ghost girl hisses at her. “After everything I did for you, after I practically handed you your revenge on a silver platter—“</p><p class="p1">“What if I don’t want revenge?” she snaps, completely and utterly tired. Taking the moonstone was supposed to feel freeing, it was supposed to be her destiny. Yet all she feels is trapped. “What if I don’t want to listen to someone who gave Rapunzel the means to destroy me?”</p><p class="p1">Not that Rapunzel would ever go through with that. Even after threatening those she loves, Cassandra has no doubt in her mind the sentimental princess would have found a way to spare her. Foolish, she decides resolutely (strong, a small part of her mind whispers).</p><p class="p1">“They <em>lied</em>,” the girl stresses again. “They want to keep you from your destiny. If you do not take on Rapunzel, you will always be inferior to her! Just another servant to the future queen! Is that what you want?”</p><p class="p1">“Of course not,” she says, recalling decisions by a princess, and a lady in waiting who had no choice but to follow the orders.</p><p class="p1">“You say you don’t want revenge on Rapunzel,” the girl says. “But nothing will change if you don’t fight her. Only you can affect real change, only you can make sure you never have to <em>wait</em> again.”</p><p class="p1">It sounds so, so tempting. She can feel the moonstone, thrumming inside her with power beyond anything she has ever known. After Varian (unwillingly, her mind supplies with guilt she used to refuse to dwell on, because surely whatever wrongs Cassandra commits are justified? Yeah, she’s not so sure about that anymore) gave her the new incantation, she has complete control over the black rocks. She can do it, she knows. Take the world by storm. <em>Make</em> them listen.</p><p class="p1">Never wait again. No more waiting in the wings, catering to the brighter stars. No more lady in waiting, catering to a princess.</p><p class="p1">And yet… She hates to admit it, and shudders at the thought of doing so out loud, but Eugene was right. Cassandra never used to do anything without thinking it through. She used to calculate every risk. When did she decide that this…this <em>random</em> girl is not one?</p><p class="p1">“Maybe you’re right,” she says. The ghost girl grins, and opens her mouth to say more, but Cassandra beats her to it. “And maybe I will. But not with you.”</p><p class="p1">The grin fades. Eyes narrow. “Excuse me?”</p><p class="p1">“You heard me,” she says. “I know you gave them the sun incantation. I know you’ve been manipulating this whole thing from the start; me taking the moonstone, getting Rapunzel that incantation, all for that battle you pushed <em>so hard</em> for me to make happen. What I don’t know is what you had to gain from it, but whatever it is? You’ll never get it.”</p><p class="p1">“After all I have done for you? This is how you repay me?” the girl demands. “I showed you the truth!”</p><p class="p1">“The only truth you showed is that my mother was a horrible, selfish woman.” Cassandra realizes the truth as she says it. “Gothel didn’t choose Rapunzel over me. She chose <em>herself</em>.”</p><p class="p1">“I gave you power,” she hisses. “Are you really going to throw it all away?”</p><p class="p1">“Nope.” Cassandra smiles sweetly. “I’m just not going to spend it on you. So go and disappear, or whatever it is that you ghosts do. Find someone else to manipulate, because I’m done.”</p><p class="p1">The little girl studies her for a long moment. In it, she looks ancient, not like a little girl at all. Cassandra wonders just who she has been dealing with and how she could have been so foolish as to trust her.</p><p class="p1">“I see that you will not be swayed in this,” she says eventually. “A pity. But I promise you this, Cassandra…” She smiles, eerie and unsettling. “You have not seen the last of me.”</p><p class="p1">The ghost vanishes. Cassandra breathes a sigh of relief. That’s one problem dealt with. Now what?</p><p class="p1">The moonstone weighs heavy on her mind. With it, she can do wonders or atrocities; it all depends on the point of view. The girl may have been a manipulator, but she was right about one thing: Cassandra has the power to change everything, if she desires it. That feeling, <em>power</em>, is incandescent.</p><p class="p1">The sound of her stomach rumbling fills the forest. Change can come later, she decides. First things first.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <em>Wanted: Cassandra. Traitor.</em>
</p><p class="p1">The words burn into her mind, make her bunch up her fists, inspire frustration she has never known before.</p><p class="p1">Like most things these days, Cassandra ignores it.</p><p class="p1">The wanted posters have spread (everything she worked for her whole life, gone) of her new look, but with a cloak and a seedy tavern on the outskirts of Corona she should be able to go incognito.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra eats her meal, uncomfortably aware that most people in the building are criminals. People she would have chased and arrested, before. Back when she wanted to prove herself more than anything. She shakes off the discomfort, frustrated. She has the power of the moonstone. These men and women should fear <em>her</em>.</p><p class="p1">Nearby, two men are loudly immersed in conversation.</p><p class="p1">“Please, something showing your worst nightmare? Real thieves don’t get scared.”</p><p class="p1">“Pfft, yeah, right. I bet you saw…” The rest of the sentence is an inaudible whisper.</p><p class="p1">The previously confident man starts to splutter. “H-Hey! How do you even know about that?”</p><p class="p1">“Doesn’t matter, what does is that those red rocks were real and they were real scary. My little brother had actually frozen up! He wouldn’t move anymore, like a red statue. I thought he was dead, man.”</p><p class="p1">“But he wasn’t, right?”</p><p class="p1">“Yeah, thanks to the princess and that alchemist boy. We really should consider stealing our next mark somewhere away from Corona to show gratitude, is what I’m trying to say here.”</p><p class="p1">There is bile in Cassandra’s throat. She forces it down.</p><p class="p1"><em>Fear her</em>. Just a few moments ago, she had wanted these people to fear her, when it has been her fear that would have hurt a lot of people if the red rocks hadn’t been stopped. That man, criminal or not, had believed a family member to be dead. <em>She</em> did that.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra wants to throw up. No, she wants to leave. She stands up and walks towards the door.</p><p class="p1">“Hey! You still need to pay for that food!”</p><p class="p1">She whirls around. Her cloak falls back, revealing her. The tavern is struck silent, as she is recognized.</p><p class="p1">And she is <em>hated</em>. She almost flinches at the pointed daggers sent her way, but manages to keep her head held high.</p><p class="p1">“Let me leave and no one will get hurt,” she orders, fighting hard to make sure her voice doesn’t waver.</p><p class="p1">No one moves to stop her, and Cassandra flees once more.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Her reflection shows blazing, electric blue eyes.</p><p class="p1">After she crossed the line and broke free of her chains, Cassandra had liked it; had thought it was only fitting that her outside appearance changed as well, to show that she was not the same obedient lady in waiting anymore.</p><p class="p1">They are the eyes of a stranger.</p><p class="p1">She screams and makes a black rock pierce the water. It ripples and obscures her reflection.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Cassandra dreams.</p><p class="p1">She dreams that mother decides to take her with her to the tower. She experiences what it is to be chosen by Gothel.</p><p class="p1">There are chains around her wrists and there is a gag in her mouth. She tries to speak through it, but her words are muffled and unclear.</p><p class="p1">“How many times do I have to tell you, dear?” Gothel asks cheerily, twirling around a knife. “You know I hate the mumbling!”</p><p class="p1">Cassandra wakes up surrounded by red rocks. It takes a long time for them to fade back to black.</p><p class="p1">There’s a flutter of wings above her and when she looks up she can hardly believe her eyes. There, sitting on a tree branch, is…</p><p class="p1">“Owl!”</p><p class="p1">But her former companion, once so loyal, looks at her with suspicion and distaste.</p><p class="p1">“I know,” she says, shame flooding her. It's overwhelming. “I know. What have I done?” She looks at her hands in front of her with disbelief. The feeling of finally having real power might be incandescent but at what cost? “What have I <em>done</em>?”</p><p class="p1">Owl flies up from the branch. Cassandra shuts her eyes. Of course. She has pushed away everyone and now Owl will leave, too. And she <em>deserves</em> it.</p><p class="p1">There is a weight on her shoulder. She opens her eyes to see Owl perched on it.</p><p class="p1">“What…” Her voice is hoarse. “I don’t understand. How can you stick by me? I hurt my friends, I attacked my home…”</p><p class="p1">Owl remains on her shoulder.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra drops to her knees.</p><p class="p1">“I’ve gotta fix this.”</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“It’s Cassandra! Quick, someone warn the princess!”</p><p class="p1">Growing up, all she wanted to do was prove herself. Prove to her father that she was worthy of being kept, prove that he should not abandon her as her mother abandoned her, prove that one day she could be leading the guard with honor.</p><p class="p1">(Honor. She scoffs at the word. But deep down, she knows that her disdain is not because it was a foolish and petty aspiration, but because she has none left.)</p><p class="p1">Whenever she got too obsessed, whenever she trained and trained and trained until everything hurt, Stan would be there with words of encouragement and Pete would tell a funny story to take her mind off it.</p><p class="p1">Pete’s not telling funny stories now, aiming his sword at her with his whole face scrunched up in anger. The way he looks at common criminals. No.</p><p class="p1">The way he looks at traitors.</p><p class="p1">“Give up! Corona will not ever fall to you,” he tells her.</p><p class="p1">“Please,” she says, swallowing down her pride. "I’m not here to fight.”</p><p class="p1">“Yeah, right!” Stan, who was always there to cheer her up when she wouldn’t even admit she needed it, scowls. “We won’t let you hurt the princess or our kingdom!”</p><p class="p1">The guards advance on her but she employs no black rocks.</p><p class="p1">She feels like she’s still dreaming, like none of this is real. How did it get to this point? Just two years ago, she was still training to become the commanding officer of these guards, and now, they are going to arrest her.</p><p class="p1">“Cassandra.” A clear, familiar voice cuts through the haze. Rapunzel. She studies Cassandra’s face, likely wondering why she’s here.</p><p class="p1">“I’m not here to fight,” she repeats like a prayer.</p><p class="p1">Rapunzel hesitates before the emotional turmoil on her face disappears. It is replaced with certainty.</p><p class="p1">“You heard her,” Rapunzel says. “She’s surrendering. I want no violence against her. You will arrest her peacefully unless she fights you.”</p><p class="p1">The guards all comply with the order, and Cassandra’s hands are tied up with rope behind her back.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">She’s put in Varian’s old prison cell. Ironic, or something.</p><p class="p1">Rapunzel visits her, rambling about how glad she is that Cassandra changed her mind but the people still see her as a traitor, and she is working very hard to make sure her stay in the cell will be as short as possible.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra says nothing. After a disapppointed Rapunzel leaves, she curls up on the cot and lets sleep take her.</p><p class="p1">“You know I hate the mumbling!” Gothel scolds. “You foolish, naive girl.”</p><p class="p1">“Are you really so obliviously naive?“ Cassandra says to Rapunzel in the Great Tree, trying to make her see reason.</p><p class="p1">“ENOUGH! I will never stop trying to get<em> away</em> from you!”</p><p class="p1">Rapunzel’s reply, twisted by Cassandra’s subconcious.</p><p class="p1">It is a long night.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">Three days pass. Rapunzel visits each day. Cassandra ignores her every visit, too ashamed to talk to her.</p><p class="p1">“Dearie me, this place is pathetic.”</p><p class="p1">She does her best to ignore this visitor, too.</p><p class="p1">“You said you wouldn’t throw away your power,” says the ghost girl, “and yet here you are, rotting in a prison cell.”</p><p class="p1">Cassandra gives her nothing.</p><p class="p1">“You can break out any time. They haven’t dared confiscate the moonstone from you, not yet. Rapunzel imprisoned you—“</p><p class="p1">Enough is enough. “Would you give it a rest already? I’m not going to fight Rapunzel.”</p><p class="p1">“Fine,” she sneers. “Fine. Go ahead. Let them take your power away from you, the only thing that gives you any worth to these royals. Without the moonstone, you will always come second to Rapunzel. Go ahead, and perhaps the new vessel for the moonstone will be more…receptive to my needs.”</p><p class="p1">“Who even are you? Why do you care so much?”</p><p class="p1">The girl smiles with all her teeth. “I’m simply making good on a promise, that’s all.”</p><p class="p1">Cassandra rolls her eyes at the cryptic answer. “What makes you so sure someone else is gonna get the moonstone, anyway? I doubt anyone is gonna let <em>this</em>,” she gestures at herself, “happen again.”</p><p class="p1">“We’ll see.”</p><p class="p1">“You’re going to manipulate someone else into grabbing the stone, aren’t you.” It’s not a question.</p><p class="p1">“Going to?” The girl laughs. Her eyes needle into Cassandra. “Who says I haven’t already started?”</p><p class="p1">The hair on the back of her neck rises.</p><p class="p1">“Until we meet again, Cassandra.”</p><p class="p1">She vanishes.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">“And I know,” Rapunzel says, before mumbling, “at least, I think I know because you won’t talk to me…” Her volume gets back to normal. “That you changed, I mean, you kind of proved that when you let the guards arrest you. But, some people are…concerned. That this is a trick. That you are,” she clears her throat, “planning to destroy Corona from the inside out. That’s why they want you to give up the moonstone. You’re not, though, right? Planning to de—“</p><p class="p1">“Gothel,” Cassandra interrupts, effectively shutting Rapunzel up. “She had a thing about mumbling, didn’t she?”</p><p class="p1">“I…yes. She did,” she says after a shocked pause. “She hated it whenever I mumbled. How’d you know?”</p><p class="p1">“I guessed. I saw you interact with your parents, and your reaction to mumbling. Then I saw the mirror shard. I put two and two together.”</p><p class="p1">“…Well, I’m glad you’re finally speaking,” Rapunzel tells her with a smile. “And I’m so glad that you decided to be friends again.”</p><p class="p1">It feels like cold water has been splashed over her.</p><p class="p1">“Excuse me?”</p><p class="p1">Her smile falters a little. “What is it?”</p><p class="p1">“We are not friends again,” Cassandra says. “I don’t… We’re not, okay? That’s not why I surrendered.” Familiar frustration bubbles up again. “I came back because I hurt people. I attacked my home, my father, you. I kidnapped Varian—“</p><p class="p1">“Cass,” Rapunzel says gently. “I know what you’ve done.”</p><p class="p1">“Well, fine! Then you know why I’m here! Because I’ve done terrible things, and I’m—“ She cuts herself off. “Please leave.”</p><p class="p1">She can’t do this right now. She can’t speak with Rapunzel. She doesn’t <em>understand</em>.</p><p class="p1">“Cass, we can work this out—“</p><p class="p1">“<em>Leave</em>!” Black rocks spark around them as a reminder that Cassandra is only in this prison by courtesy.</p><p class="p1">“Okay,” she says. “Okay. I’ll leave.”</p><p class="p1">Miserable, Cassandra lies back down on her cot. She stares at the dirty ceiling until she falls asleep.</p><p class="p2"> </p>
<hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">She wakes up to the sound of shouting. Male voices. Not Rapunzel. She’s standing upright immediately at the sound of footsteps coming closer.</p><p class="p1">And there he is, irritation melting into relief when he sees her, disgusting relief that she does not deserve.</p><p class="p1">“Cassandra?” her father asks hesitantly.</p><p class="p1">She says nothing, just stares at him, remembering the last time she saw him.</p><p class="p1">“Cassandra, you don’t know how glad I am that you came here,” he says, walking closer to the cell. “Are you alright?”</p><p class="p1">She blinks stupidly. She tries to remember the last time anyone save for Rapunzel showed any concern for her wellbeing.</p><p class="p1">“Cassie?"</p><p class="p1">The old nickname startles her. “D…Dad…?” Her voice sounds broken, even to herself.</p><p class="p1">Her father decides to throw all logic out the window and actually enters her cell.</p><p class="p1">“What are you doing?” Her voice shakes. “You can’t be in here.”</p><p class="p1">“I’m the captain of the guard and you are my daughter,” he says. “Of course I can.”</p><p class="p1">“Are they going to execute me?” she whispers.</p><p class="p1">“Princess Rapunzel would never let that happen,” he says. “And neither will I. If it comes down to staging a prison break, that’s what I’ll do.”</p><p class="p1">The weight of everything hits her. Her father sees it and embraces her tightly.</p><p class="p1">"Dad, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry—"</p><p class="p1">A small whimper escapes her. Then a sob. She tries to hold it back, but she’s so tired. She gives up. They sink to the floor, Cassandra sobbing into her father’s chest.</p><p class="p1">“Shsh, it’s alright,” he says, cradling the back of her head. “I’m here.”</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1"> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Me: I'm gonna write a story about Rapunzel standing up for herself! No victim blaming in this house!<br/>Also me: long thought out Cassandra redemption and Zhan Tiri being evil<br/>My outline: WHY ARE YOU IGNORING MEEEEEE</p><p>Took some creative license with Zhan Tiri's ghost form.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">“She actually said that? She’s gonna manipulate someone else to take the moonstone?” Varian paces in his old cell. “Okay, this is bad. This is really bad, the last thing we need is another,” he winces, “well, you. No offense.”</p><p class="p1">“None taken,” she says softly. “Varian, I know officially I asked you here to tell you about that ghost girl, but I’m… There’s another reason, too.”</p><p class="p1">“Yeah?” he asks nonchalantly, but his eyes betray that he knows exactly what she’s working up to. It makes it easier. It makes it harder.</p><p class="p1">She fights down her pride like acid in her throat. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kidnapped you, or used that truth serum. It was wrong.”</p><p class="p1">“Okay.”</p><p class="p1">“Okay?” she repeats, incredulous. “That’s it?”</p><p class="p1">“Well, I did almost crush you with a metal machine once,” he says. “Let’s just say we’re even and move on.”</p><p class="p1">She laughs, once, startled. “You’re really not gonna hold a grudge.”</p><p class="p1">“I’ve done grudges. Didn’t agree with me. Besides,” he softens, “I know how hard it is to earn back everyone’s trust and forgiveness. It will be tough for you, too, and I won’t add to it.”</p><p class="p1">“How did you do it?” she asks, her voice hoarse.</p><p class="p1">“How’d I do what?”</p><p class="p1">“How did you get them to forgive you?” Cassandra has to know. “How did you forgive yourself?”</p><p class="p1">Varian considers the question. “I don’t know. As soon as I decided not to be on the wrong side of history, Rapunzel just accepted it. Even after I kidnapped her mother. Even after I almost encased her mother in amber. Even after, well, everything.”</p><p class="p1">She flinches and looks away. Varian notices the reaction.</p><p class="p1">“I think they accepted me because they believed I could be better,” he says. “So I decided I wanted to be the person they thought I was. I wanted to,” he laughs softly, like sharing an inside joke with himself, “make them proud. I think you just have to…keep going. Don’t stop trying. No matter what.”</p><p class="p1">“…That’s some good advice.”</p><p class="p1">“I have my moments,” he teases.</p><p class="p1">“Thank you, Varian.”</p><p class="p1">He smiles, crooked and bright, and for the first time, Cassandra has hope that she can do this.</p><p class="p2"> </p><hr/><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1">“Varian told me of the situation. I know you wanted me to leave, but…” Rapunzel lets the sentence hang in the air. Cassandra can’t look her in the eyes.</p><p class="p1">“Cass—”</p><p class="p1">She glances up, then. “Cassandra.”</p><p class="p1">“…Cassandra. Gothel and the girl weren’t the only reasons you took the moonstone, were they?”</p><p class="p1">“No. No, they weren’t.”</p><p class="p1">It’s unbearable, looking into those big, green eyes full of compassion, trying to find out what it is that bothers Cassandra and how to fix it.</p><p class="p1">“Rapunzel,” she chokes out. “I’m so…<em>sorry</em>. I never should have blamed you for Gothel’s death. I never should have blamed you for being taken by her, you were a baby and she wasn’t a good mother, how can you just stand here and—“</p><p class="p1">“It means a lot to me,” she interrupts, “to hear you say that. It hurt, when you blamed me for those things.”</p><p class="p1">They are silent for three breaths.</p><p class="p1">“…Do you want to know the other reasons for the moonstone?”</p><p class="p1">Rapunzel looks at her, long and hard, with the scrutiny of a queen. “I think I already do know them.”</p><p class="p1">“Everything got so messed up. I never meant to… I mean, I was so angry. At you. At the world. The unfairness of it all. You made me feel so…”</p><p class="p1">“Inferior?”</p><p class="p1">“Yes,” she breathes. “Exactly. But I realize now that it was so stupid to hold that against you. It’s not your fault that you were born into a higher class than I was. You could’ve been less condescending about it, though. When you pulled rank to win an argument, you weren’t my best friend, you were the future queen and I was just your servant.”</p><p class="p1">“You’ve never been <em>just my servant</em> to me, Cass…andra.”</p><p class="p1">“You can call me Cass,” she says. “I never felt like you…considered me, at all.”</p><p class="p1">Rapunzel looks at her, frowning. “Cass, I lived in a tower for eighteen years. My only company was the woman who kidnapped me and a chameleon who couldn’t talk back. I don’t know how to be a good friend. But neither do you.”</p><p class="p1">“I know, I blamed you for—“</p><p class="p1">“No,” she says. “I’m talking about before you took the moonstone. If…if it’s okay?” Cassandra nods. “Well, I just felt like… sometimes, you tried to force me to do what you said and got angry and kind of aggresive when I didn’t. You made me doubt my choices, and I know they’re not always good ones, but… You made me feel like I was supposed to trust you and only you, when there were other people who also had my best interests at heart.”</p><p class="p1">Cassandra keeps her face neutral. “I see.”</p><p class="p1">“Are you mad?”</p><p class="p1">“Are you?” she counters.</p><p class="p1">“We’re both not…the best for each other,” Rapunzel says hesitatingly. “Are we.”</p><p class="p1">Cassandra snorts without any humor.</p><p class="p1">“I’m going to be better,” she says. “I’ve hurt you. I’m sorry. But I know sorry doesn’t fix everything.”</p><p class="p1">“I’m sorry, too. Can we move on?”</p><p class="p1">“Yes.” She smiles, then, really smiles. “Yes, we can.”</p><p class="p1">“Good. Let’s talk about what we’ll do with the moonstone.”</p><p class="p1">“I can’t just hand it over,” she says. “That girl might have been bluffing, but if she wasn’t, if someone else with even bigger a grudge than mine takes it, who knows what will happen.”</p><p class="p1">“But you can’t keep it,” Rapunzel says incredulously. “You’ll have to live with the destructive powers of the moonstone forever.”</p><p class="p1">“I could go into exile,” she muses out loud.</p><p class="p1">“No! You don’t deserve that.”</p><p class="p1">“It wouldn’t have to be exile,” she continues her train of thought. “Just… I’d like to get away from Corona. Keeping the stone away from whoever the girl is manipulating is a good bonus, wouldn’t you say? It's not all bad. Now that I can control it, I mean.”</p><p class="p1">“You’d really do that?”</p><p class="p1">“Think about it, Raps.” The nickname comes out easily and makes Rapunzel smile. “If I give up the moonstone, the black rocks will destroy this kingdom again until you join with it.”</p><p class="p1">“So then I join with it,” she says, defiant. “It was what I was planning to do in the Dark Kingdom until you interfered.”</p><p class="p1">“Yeah, and Adira and everyone else implied heavily that it would <em>kill</em> you. This way, we don’t have to take the risk.”</p><p class="p1">“…Doesn’t it hurt? The moonstone is supposed to be…bad.”</p><p class="p1">“Actually, it’s not. I think you of all people know that it’s not the power itself that’s bad, but the person who wields it. A sword’s just a sword until it’s used it to assasinate someone. Someone else might use a sword to defend herself or others.”</p><p class="p1">“That’s well put.” Rapunzel smiles. “But we do it right. No prison break. Your new life shouldn’t be started as a fugitive.”</p><p class="p2"> </p><hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">It is easier said than done. To say that King Frederic is reluctant to let the daughter of the woman who kidnapped his daughter go <em>with</em> the moonstone, is an understatement. It takes a week of pleading from his daughter and urging from his wife, and even then, it is hardly a perfect situation.</p><p class="p1">But Cassandra is no longer a fugutive, she is free to start over somewhere away from Corona, and that is what matters. She sets out to see the world. The further away she gets from Corona, the less wary stares she is met with. In one kingdom, a little girl is awed at her blue hair. None of these people know what it means, what power she wields, and it feels good.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra is in a forest, practising the sword with her bad hand, when she sees a familiar figure.</p><p class="p1">“Owl!” she exclaims, grinning. “It’s good to see you. What’s that you got there?”</p><p class="p1">There’s a parchment in Owl’s beak:</p><p class="p1">
  <em>Missive from Princess Rapunzel of Corona, requesting the return of Cassandra for a matter of great importance.</em>
</p><p class="p1">It’s not Rapunzel’s handwriting or tone of voice, so it must have been done by a scribe. Official.</p><p class="p1">She is wary, but Rapunzel knows that Cass needed to get away. If she needs her to come back, things must be serious. Her mind wanders to the ghost girl, but that’s impossible; the moonstone is right here, with her. It has to be something else.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra makes the trip back, her mind reeling with possibilities, but what she finds when she arrives is nothing like what she had expected.</p><p class="p2"> </p><hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">She’s greeted by her father, who excitedly takes her by the hand and leads her through the castle.</p><p class="p1">“Dad,” she tries to get a word in. “What is this about? Why couldn’t write Rapunzel write me the letter herself?”</p><p class="p1">“Because this is official Corona business,” a booming voice answers. King Frederic. Belatedly, she notices they’ve arrived in the throne room. Fear hits her next: that the king has changed his mind about letting her go free.</p><p class="p1">Before she can voice these fears, Rapunzel enters the room. “Cass!” she greets, grinning, and it’s easy to grin back. Being away from Rapunzel and Corona really did her some good.</p><p class="p1">“Why am I here?” she asks. “I doubt it’s because of my pleasant company.”</p><p class="p1">Eugene, standing next to Rapunzel, smiles wryly. “Oh, no, it certainly isn’t that.”</p><p class="p1">“It’s not to grace me with yours, either,” she counters, but before they can get fully into it, the queen clears her throat.</p><p class="p1">“Rapunzel,” says Arianna, her eyes kind. “Why don’t you tell Cassandra why you asked her to return?”</p><p class="p1">She perks up. “Right! Cass, remember that conversation we had about the moonstone?”</p><p class="p1">“It rings a vague bell,” she says, amused at her enthusiasm.</p><p class="p1">“<em>Well</em>, turns out, there is a way I can join with it! Your timing is actually perfect. The eclipse is tomorrow.”</p><p class="p1">“Eclipse?” she repeats, brows furrowed. “Raps, correct me if I’m wrong, but an eclipse does not sound like something that is good for someone who embodies the sun."</p><p class="p1">Rapunzel shakes her head. “We found out that the eclipse will make the sundrop become solid like the moonstone. If I part with it, and you part with the moonstone, we can join them without any harm being done!”</p><p class="p1">“You understand, Cassandra, that this is not optional,” says King Frederic.</p><p class="p1">A twinge of resentment passes through her, but the king’s orders don’t matter, because Cassandra doesn’t want to keep the moonstone anyway. It’s the last thing tethering her to everything that brought her down, it’s connected to the ghost girl who manipulated her, and she doesn’t want it.</p><p class="p1">“I’m surprised, Your Majesty,” she says, because she gives as good as she gets, “that you’ll even risk the safety of your daughter like this. You’ve locked her in a <em>tower</em> to do so, after all. Do you know that this is completely, one hundred percent safe? Is getting rid of my powers really worth it to you?”</p><p class="p1">The king bristles. Not even the queen’s comforting hand makes the narrowing of his eyes disappear. “Remember your place,” he grits out. “You have only been given this chance because I allowed it, for my daughter, for my most trusted captain.”</p><p class="p1">“No,” she says. “I have been given this chance because I wanted it to be so. I could use the moonstone to destroy this kingdom and instead, I’m <em>allowing</em> you take it away from me. Remember <em>your</em> place.” She smiles. “Your Majesty.”</p><p class="p1">“<em>Okay</em>.” Rapunzel laughs nervously, her smile much too bright. “Let’s all just move on! Cass, we can catch up somewhere else, Dad, I’m sure you’re busy. Okay, let’s go, bye!”</p><p class="p1">She grabs Cassandra’s arm, who lets herself be led away from the throne room, Eugene following them.</p><p class="p1">“Well,” he says when they’re far enough away. “Wasn’t that all just sweet. Threatening the reigning monarch was a little much, don’t you think?”</p><p class="p1">“What should I have done instead?” she asks sweetly. “Looked in a mirror and combed my hair while ignoring the king’s comment?”</p><p class="p1">“One out of three! Your time away has improved your intelligence, maybe next time you’ll get the other two as well.”</p><p class="p1">“Guys,” Rapunzel interrupts because she knows them well enough to know that they can go at this for hours. “Let’s just go to my room and then Cass can tell us all about her adventures!”</p><p class="p1">Cassandra smiles while they walk to her room, thinking about how good it felt to tell the king off.</p><p class="p2"> </p><hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">The moon and the sun unite.</p><p class="p2"> </p><hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">The ghost girl hadn’t been lying when she said she was convincing someone else to take the moonstone; thankfully, they had been prepared for that, and thanks to Varian, he was stopped from taking another step by the power of alchemy.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra is free. From Corona, from Rapunzel, from the moonstone.</p><p class="p1">“I’ll miss you,” Rapunzel, hair brown and freshly cut, says. “Again.”</p><p class="p1">“I can’t promise I’ll visit often, but… We can write letters, every once in a while.”</p><p class="p1">She brightens. “Yes. Yes, that sounds perfect.”</p><p class="p1">They hug.</p><p class="p1">“Try not to threaten any monarchs from new kingdoms into executing you,” says Eugene.</p><p class="p1">“Try not to let your ego grow anymore; it’s already at full capacity,” says Cassandra.</p><p class="p1">They hug.</p><p class="p1">“I love you,” her father tells her, "so much. And I’m so proud.”</p><p class="p1">“I love you, too.”</p><p class="p1">They hug.</p><p class="p1">Cassandra sets off on her horse with a smile on her face and moves forward.</p><p class="p2"> </p><hr/><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">A year after she leaves Cassandra gets a letter, inviting her to a royal wedding. She usually gives Corona a wide berth, but for this, she’ll make an exception.</p><p class="p1"> </p><p class="p1"> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And that's it, we're finished. Thank you for reading!</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hope you enjoyed! Please comment and let me know what you think.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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